Buddhism has 8 “Auspicious Symbols.” What Are Your Symbols?
Gretchen Rubin
6x NYT Bestselling Author | Host of the "Happier with Gretchen Rubin" Podcast | Order "Life in Five Senses," out now in paperback
I love numbered lists. My 12 Personal Commandments. My 8 Splendid Truths. The 10 Myths about happiness. The Essential 7 of Habits.
Buddhism has many numbered lists—the Triple Refuge, the Noble Eightfold Path, the Four Noble Truths—which is surprising to me, given Buddhism’s emphasis on gateless gates and transcending the bounds of rational thinking.
There’s a koan to be written about that paradox, for sure. (Along with numbered lists, I love koans.) Let’s see…how about, “Use numbers to throw away enumeration.”
I particularly love Buddhism’s eight auspicious symbols:
1. Parasol
2. Golden fish
3. Treasure vase
4. Lotus
5. Conch shell
6. Endless knot
7. Victory banner
8. Wheel of Dharma
I made up a list of my seven auspicious symbols:
1. Bluebird (of course)
2. Ruby slippers (what I want is already within my grasp)
3. Dice (chance and fortune)
4. Blood (hard to explain: diabetes, hepatitis C, St. Therese of Lisieux)
5. Gold star (my right actions are their own reward)
6. Holstein cow (my family, Kansas City)
7. Peacock feather (symbols beyond words)
This is so satisfying, I could keep going with more symbols. How about you? What would you choose for your auspicious symbols, and why?
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Gretchen Rubin is the author of the blockbuster New York Times bestsellers, Better Than Before, The Happiness Project, and Happier at Home. She writes about happiness and habit-formation at gretchenrubin.com. Follow her here by clicking the yellow FOLLOW button, on Twitter, @gretchenrubin, on Facebook, facebook.com/GretchenRubin.
Photo: Don Sampson, Flickr
Association Management | Project and Content Management | Creative Soul
9 年7 (my auspicious number) Heart: for love and for life Color wheel: an endless (circle) array of possibilities to represent our moods Sky: no matter what the weather (or life) brings, it is temporary Laughter: there is nothing better Music note: representing the profound effect that sounds/music can make in our lives Paintbrush: each day is a new canvas and it is up to me alone to paint what I want Table: a solid piece in the home where family gathers; the heart of the home
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9 年Truly, Jesus is just all we need, Him alone is all in one, if it love, peace, joy, prosperity, health, etc.
Police Officer at City of Marquette Heights, IL
9 年Paganism isn't helpful. We need a Savior not a symbol. We need Jesus Christ.
Senior Writer / Editor
9 年I've never put this into words before, but I've always considered my auspicious symbols to be: 1) Bluebird (happiness); 2) Feathers (hope, i.e., "hope is a thing with feathers, that percheth in the soul"), my Indigenous ancestry; 3) Cross (my Christian faith); 4) Rose (a guiding symbol and my middle name); and 5) Turquoise (my Indigenous ancestry).
Executive & Organisational Coach, Specialist in Women Leadership & Gender Diversity, CEO of Beyond Limits Ltd.
9 年I like this. To think about which symbols respresent who we are and where we come from links us to our inner sources of power and strengths.